Can I build a business doing B+W portraits only?

[wclark5179]

"Portrait Session Fee: $50"
Quote from your web site.


Won't make much money but you'll have some fun.

 

[removed account4]

Sears is a department store; some Sears stores have a 'portrait studio' where people can go to get family portraits, Christmas cards, etc. The results are very generic and it surprises me if the market for these kind of portrait mills still exists considering it's so easy to shoot good quality digital images with cheap consumer equipment and get prints, calendars, and all kind of paraphenalia so cheaply; it kind of made sense back when photography was harder and more expensive.

i worked at a lifetouch studio ( inside a jc penny ) for a while
and they made some very nice portraits there.
not all department store portrait studios are bad. in the end
a portrait studio is only as good as the person taking the portraits.

and it doesn't matter what the image is recorded on ...

 

[theseasideartist]

Thanks Rick-
thats my location alright- seasonal resort town-

surfers and sailboats...etc.
historic reenactments too

it certainly would be different than what everyone else is doing

will PM you - D

 

[John R.]

If you carve a niche with your own style that the public appreciates then people will seek you out. The key is test marketing. Try different promotional approaches at different price points and see what response you get. Run special marketings, say a husband /wife special in B/W with a archival heirloom print, offer it as a limited time special offer. See what happens. Do variations of that type of marketing and keep your marketing targeted to a special audience that might respond.

A shotgun approach to marketing is a waste of marketing money. You need to identify the type of client you are seeking and then directly market to them with offerings that are very appealing. Whether or not your studio can survive in a small town on B/W portraiture alone is hard to say. Many factors would need to be analyzed. No one can answer that question. A business plan, even a simple or modest one can help guide you and remove much of the confusion and mixed operations in your studio that you mention. As a small (micro) business owner it would be very wise for you to consult with SCORE (part of the SBA) on the business side of your studio for guidance. They can help you work out a business plan and work on other important issues with you.

As for the photography end, being that you are in a small town you pretty much will have to be a generalist until your studio is well established with a loyal client base and/or gains a reputation for a specific niche offering. Being a generalist builds the foundation of your studio. Forget about Sears, sure you will lose some customers to them but you must always remember you can't be everything to everyone. As for the friend with a digital camera and Pshop they too are not your competitor, just produce a product that is far better than anything they can acheive and it alone will be your silent salesman. You can do it if you plan it and execute things well. Best of luck in your endeavours.

 

[wrench]

Hi everyone. I totally forgot about this thread, sorry to leave you hanging.

So the update is that by most accounts, this venture was a bust. I think it's a combination of 1. I'm not very good at marketing (that's not what I got into this business for), 2. I really don't enjoy running a business. The paperwork and officialdom of it was a total drag on morale and motivation. 3. I live in a VERY isolated place (pop.1200, no surrounding area business), and 4. There really isn't a market for b+w portraits here. Everyone wants Sears portraits (they really can't tell the difference, and they want COLOR), and they're so used to going out of town for things that it's just something else on the list. Hence, the $50 so I could compete, but it just isn't worth it.

Ironically enough, I did drum up a relatively booming design business. For some reason, everyone started coming to me for brochures and business cards once they figured out that I'm practically the only person in town that can do it. I also got commissioned to do some really cool installation projects. It turns out that I really like doing this kind of work, the problem is that I don't have the expertise to expand it. Design is a lot less stressful for me than portraiture because there's no pressure to get the shot. It happened at least once that I had to reshoot, and it was the crappiest feeling ever. With design, the client gives me an idea of what they want, I create it, they come look at it, and if they like it, great, if not, I can just revise it. Much much less stressful.

So, the long and the short of it is that I still absolutely love portraiture, but not for pay. I was consistently photographing on my own a part from the business, and looking back, my best work was not commissioned. It was convenient though to have a whole studio/darkroom set up to use whenever I wanted. For work, I really think I can make a go of it as a designer, and it's the kind of work that won't totally stress me out. For that reason, I'm headed to graduate school in the fall to study design (and photography), with a view toward getting a full time job as a designer, and continuing photography as an art practice.

 

[theseasideartist]

Thanks for the update!
interesting how things worked out for you-
just wanted to thank you for this thread- I have gotten some great advice from it-
I am shooting less and less digital and more and more film!
I found that by shifting to "editorial stock"- I can avoid some of the deadline pressure of spot news-
and the required high speed output that was necessary to make a deadline.

I am working on a few self -funded documentary projects [in film].
I can take my time and also spend more time on each project and go in depth-on each project.

thanks again- good luck in school-

and hey once you get to school - you may find that with a larger population you can begin again to make
the images you want; and afterwards, the sales too.
D